The death of Cam McCarthy, aged just 29, is the latest in a series of heartbreaking tragedies that have hit the Fremantle Dockers AFL club over the past eight years.
McCarthy, who played in the AFL from 2014 to 2020, was found dead at Lake Coogee in Perth on Thursday night.
“The death is being treated as non-suspicious,” WA Police said in a statement, adding that a forensic report will be prepared.
The Western Australian-born footballer was selected by GWS with the 14th pick in the 2013 national draft.
The death of Cam McCarthy (pictured) on Thursday has devastated Fremantle Dockers fans who have had to deal with a series of tragedies in recent years.
He played 21 games for the Giants before leaving the Sydney club at the end of the 2015 season, citing mental health issues and homesickness.
The devastating news about McCarthy comes after fellow dockers Shane Yarran, Harley Balic and Colin Sylvia died young in shocking incidents dating back to 2018.
In April of that year, Yarran was found dead in his Perth home, aged just 28, and police also did not treat his death as suspicious.
He joined Fremantle in 2015 and distinguished himself as a talent, kicking 10 goals in six games before retiring due to legal issues while facing two charges of assault, followed by a series of court appearances after he stopped playing.
The father of a young daughter at the time of his death, Yarran was fondly remembered as a loving father and great teammate.
Fremantle’s Shane Yarran (pictured) was found dead in his Perth home aged just 32 in 2018, leaving behind a young daughter.
Colin Sylvia (pictured while playing for the Melbourne Demons) lost his life in a car accident in 2018, aged just 32.
Sylvia died in a car accident at just 32 years old in October 2018.
He died at the scene of the collision in Irymple, in the far north-west of Victoria, and the horrific news was first announced by his former team-mate Brent Moloney, who mourned the loss of his “best friend”.
Sylvia’s girlfriend Mindy Jory, a legal receptionist in Mildura, shared a photo of him with her and their son, captioning it with a heart emoji.
The couple had started dating shortly before the accident, but posts on his and her social media accounts showed a deeply loving relationship filled with weekends away and a happy, family-centered life.
Sylvia spent 11 years playing for the Melbourne Demons and the Dockers, and was the former club’s leading vote-getter in the 2010 Brownlow Medal count.
Harley Balic was just 25 years old when he was found dead in a Melbourne hotel in January 2022 and police once again found the incident was not suspicious.
Almost two years ago, Harley Balic (pictured playing for Fremantle in 2017) was found dead in a Melbourne hotel aged just 25.
The talented midfielder (pictured in a social media post) had been candid when discussing his mental health battles during and after his playing career.
The highly touted junior joined the Dockers before transferring to the Demons ahead of the 2018 season, but retired from the sport before the end of that year, saying he had “no heart.”
Balic had been open about the mental health problems he had suffered in the past and said he had lost his passion for the game.
“In the end it was an easy decision, since I’ve been thinking about it for a while,” he said when announcing his retirement.
“It’s something I won’t regret and I’m very grateful to Melbourne for allowing me to come to the club for a second chance.”
“I have always loved football, but my heart is not in it and everything ends up being a routine and I think it is the right thing to do.”
In 2020 he spoke about his mental struggles since retiring prematurely from the sport.
“The way I left football, unfinished, left me lost in the world,” he stated.
McCarthy (pictured center during a 2017 game for the Dockers) managed to transfer to his hometown club after beginning his AFL career with the GWS Giants.
‘That caused depressive episodes and things like that. Getting to the highest level, which you had dedicated your whole life to, and then suddenly becoming a nobody, seemed quite challenging to me.’
After failing to secure a trade to Fremantle for the 2016 season, McCarthy excelled in AFL football before being signed by the Dockers.
The talented forward played 49 games for Fremantle in four seasons from 2017 before being delisted at the end of the 2020 season.
During his final season in the AFL system, McCarthy was diagnosed with epilepsy after collapsing in training.
In total, the talented forward played 70 AFL games and scored 99 goals.